Journal article
The Journal of Ethics, Forthcoming
APA
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Sweet, J. For Feasibility Eliminativism. The Journal of Ethics, Forthcoming.
Chicago/Turabian
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Sweet, Jake. “For Feasibility Eliminativism.” The Journal of Ethics Forthcoming (n.d.).
MLA
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Sweet, Jake. “For Feasibility Eliminativism.” The Journal of Ethics, vol. Forthcoming.
BibTeX Click to copy
@article{jake-a,
title = {For Feasibility Eliminativism},
journal = {The Journal of Ethics},
volume = {Forthcoming},
author = {Sweet, Jake}
}
Abstract: Despite its centrality in political philosophy, I argue for eliminating the concept of ‘feasibility’. Surveying standard philosophical accounts, I show that ‘feasibility’ ambiguously refers to possibility or probability, with more or less additional parameters. Because of this ambiguity, and because feasibility claims routinely omit key specifications – such as relevant agents, constraint types, or probability thresholds – I argue that feasibility claims further compound pre-existing ambiguities in possibility and probability talk. I introduce a Disambiguation Protocol (DP) for analyzing and replacing feasibility claims, and argue the DP’s effectiveness bolsters the case for eliminativism. Weighing conservation against elimination, I contend that conservationist payoffs are weak, whereas eliminativist reasons – especially ‘feasibility’s potential ideological function – are strong. Eliminating ‘feasibility’ would clarify political philosophy and, potentially, wider political discourse, while ensuring transformative political proposals are not excluded from consideration by appeal to a defective concept.